This article was amended on Thursday 29 January 2009. Mark Duncan has asked us to clarify that on 2 November 2006, at the conclusion of this trial in Blackfriars Crown Court, he was acquitted of all charges laid against him. Lee Collins was also acquitted.

Two conmen posed as upmarket antique dealers to "cajole, harangue and deceive" their victims into relinquishing heirlooms, including paintings and jewellery later sold at auction, Blackfriars crown court in London heard yesterday.

Lee Collins, 39, and Mark Duncan, 33, were accused of claiming to be directors of a non-existent antiques business to deceive 13 elderly people out of heirlooms worth up to £680,000. Their alleged victims include former MP Lord Lauderdale and Dorothy Baden-Powell, of the scouting family. They denied 18 counts of conspiracy, theft and deception. The trial continues.